Is Society Outpacing Religion?
Religious leaders are having a particularly difficult time communicating their ideals to the faithful of late. Are priests, ministers, and spiritual leaders falling out of step with the collective values of society or is this the way it has always been? Members of clergy hold a position of trust and religious youth are often trained to accept ideas from them without processing those ideas through the personal filter of life experiences or values. In fact, many people hold values that are instilled in them by the people in their lives that they trust the most. One reason why religious organizations in the industrialized world are declining in influence is that new, secular sources of ideas instill values and critical thinking skills in people before traditional or religious ideologues have the opportunity to instill scripted, uncompromising “morals” which defy the norms of behavioral logic.
Today, it is easy to be dismissive of religious edicts but one must never forget that the church once wielded the power of life and death. In centuries past, excommunication by the Church was life-changing and often fatal. Individuals would lose their jobs, they’d be shunned by friends and family, forced out of their homes, and run out of town. According to tradition, such a person would be condemned to burn in hell forever as a son of perdition and after death, be denied the right of burial on family plots, consecrated land, or even within city limits.
Consider Joan of Arc who was declared a heretic and burned alive by agents of the Church for claiming that she could talk to God. The Church’s official position was that only priests could do that. Protestants were killed in droves and wars were fought for this very reason and the Church still maintains the same opinion today.
People today hear about papal dictates and chuckle like it’s no big deal. When the Pope says you should not use birth control, many Catholic women say, “Is he going to have the baby for me?” There was a time—not nearly as long ago as you might think—where such attitudes would be highly perilous and self-destructive. I can hear the Evangelical thinking, “It still is, you just don’t know it. You will answer to God for those words.” I must confess that if the same person said that to me my response would be something like, “Well, you are entitled to your opinion.”
One should educate oneself and cast off the pangs of guilt, superstition, and ignorance. This can make you less susceptible to fears of the bogeyman coming to get you because you don’t let a guy who is just like you except for some robes, tell you what to do. Oh by the way, are those robes pure silk? Imagine how many Haitians earthquake victims could be fed if you sold those fine vestments and gold chalices in favor of food, water, and medicine. Suffice it to say, I make every effort to respect every religion and respect each individual’s right to live according to their beliefs, provided those beliefs do not interfere with my lifestyle or my beliefs. I have heard it said that you have the right to make a fist and swing that fist as much as you like. But your right to swing your fist ends at my face.
Some religious ideology seems petty and almost comical. An example of this would be Pope Benedict XVI chiming in about the film Avatar. With all the hunger, war, and strife going on in the world, why would the Pope think it necessary to voice an opinion of something some might call trivial? The Vatican press and radio have warned of the dangers of worshiping nature because a major theme of the film deals with the indigenous inhabitants of the planet Pandora (called the Navi) living in harmony with the forces of nature on their world and revering a deity called Eywa which lives in a network of sacred plants (the word worshiping would be too strong since this is never depicted explicitly). The Pope warned that the “egalitarian vision” depicted whereby the Navi achieve an equilibrium with nature and do not elevate their importance in nature above that of other species, opens the way to “neo-paganism.” Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said that Pope Benedict XVI fears this will turn nature into a “new divinity.” Despite the assertions that Avatar has introduced a new form of spirituality, it is actually not without precedent in modern times. The Native American people worshiped the Great Spirit and many of their faith’s basic tenets dealt with how they should interact with nature.
Other religious gaffs are more hurtful. The most obvious example of this is 700 Club evangelist Pat Robertson calling Haiti “cursed” after the 12 January earthquake. He tragically claimed that the entire nation made a pact with the devil during the slave uprising, which led to their 1804 defeat of France and independence as a nation. He said that the slaves (ALL of them) asked the devil to help them in exchange for servitude and that the devil said, “Okay, it’s a deal.” The quotes are not a mistake, he actually quoted the devil on national TV (Albeit without proper attribution. I hear the devil’s lawyers are up in arms about it.). Then, he cleverly attempted to give it the ring of truth by following the statement with the phrase, “true story.” How could he have been privy to that conversation? Were there listening devices or is there a certified transcript somewhere that he is not sharing with the rest of us? Either way, that is a grievous and damnable accusation to hurl at people who are hurting enough already. Where is the expression of love that Christianity says God has for them? John Stewart did an excellent piece about this where he lists about a dozen things from the Bible that Robertson could have said to comfort the people of Haiti but instead, Robertson decided to rub salt in the wound and say basically that they had it coming. Perhaps Mr. Robertson can tell us if the Archbishop killed in the quake had sold his soul as well..? Or maybe the entire student body of a collapsed elementary school where ALL of the children were killed???
As you might imagine, this comment was not well received in Haiti or anywhere else outside of the conservative talk radio crowd. Raymond Joseph, Haitian Ambassador to the U.S., delivered a scathing response.
In previous times, people would have been afraid to speak criticisms of religious figures aloud for fear of reprisal from either the Church or from God himself. Today, subjugation of world opinions is not so simple and thank goodness for that. Pat Robertson has been universally condemned for what he said. Does this mean that religious freedoms are under attack? I don’t think so. But liberty must not only guarantee freedom to worship as one chooses but must also guarantee freedom FROM religion as well, if one chooses to live that way. Modern communities are adopting this position at an ever-increasing pace. This means that the days where religious leaders could get the reaction they wanted by wagging their fingers at people and prognosticating futures of doom and gloom are waning. The need to convey religious values in a way that highly educated populations can relate to is a reality that religions must adapt to in order to survive long term. One still has the freedom to voice off-kilter opinions if one chooses but they must also accept whatever consequences that poorly chosen words will illicit. Notice has been served on religious figures the world around. Insensitivity and a lack of decorum will continue to sap their credibility and with it, their ability to influence the course of society. Hiding behind the banner of speaking the cold, hard truth only goes so far and it seems that shield has been worn out. If so, they have only themselves to blame.
Yes, this is bad. I read about it and don’t know what he was thinking when he said that stuff. I don’t think many Christians agree with him. I have nothing but compasion for the earthquake victims.
Ok, so why do so many people still support Robertson and the 700 Club? This isn’t the first time he has done something like this. Many of these talking heads feel untouchable because their support base never leaves them. That is the only thing that might have an impact. Guys like this act like unfeeling robots, sitting up on high passing judgment on everyone like they never make mistakes themselves. I get so sick of that!
I watch the 700 Club every now and then. I think you are right about what Pat said. I don’t think he should be abandoned by his followers because of that but I do think it would have shown more integrity if he had apologized for causing offense. He wouldn’t have to say he was wrong if he really believes those things but it would still have displayed sympathy for the victims.